Seeing the Ryan Reynolds Café Racer styled Motorcycle

The star of latest Marvel's movie titled 'Deadpool', Ryan Reynolds not only has the passion in the world of acting. The Canadian actor also has a great passion on motorcycles, especially café racer style..

As quoted of Carscoops on Wednesday, February 24, 2016, he has been booked to the Los Angeles-based workshop named Kott Motorcycles to build a café racer styled motorcycle specifically for him with the based of one of the British famous motorcycle models, Triumph Thruxton.

Ryan Reynolds Triumph Café Racer built by Kott Motorcycles. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZNgTc)

The bikes modification process for the Deadpool's movie star was recorded in a short film documentation. Dustin Kott of Kott Motorcycles said, that the café racer style has stolen Reynold's attention.

"Café racer is a blend of harmony between comfort, usability, and reliability that not allow complicated parts exist in the motorbikes," said Dustin Kott.

Left side view of Ryan Reynolds Triumph Café Racer. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZNgYV)

Some parts were removed or changed such as central airbox, fuel tank, rear seat, cowl, and mudguards. And then Kott Motorcycles logo is displayed on a new custom fuel tank. Other parts such as seats and upholstery also got a change.

In the video shown, when Ryan Reynold seen the modification results of Triumph Thruxton Motorcycles made by Kott, he immediately smiled and laughed in delight. He immediately riding the dark-brown colored motorbike with a touch of café racer style.

Rear side view of Ryan Reynolds Triumph Café Racer. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZNgq7)

Reynold is explaining how riding can be a meditative experience when he says, "You can't do anything on a bike, except ride... and breathe." If only that were true of all forms of transportation.

For the 39-year-old actor, the motorcycle is one of the important things in his life. Moreover, the presence of the motorcycle helped him through difficult time such as when he was trying to break into the Hollywood film industry and have not been included in the top star like now. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | KOTT MOTORCYCLES | CARSCOOPS]

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A Singapore firm been prepared to build an electric supercar

When the automotive world were vying to create a vehicle that is driven by alternative energy, such as electricity, hydrogen and others. So it is not surprising that today in different corners of the world, popping up a lot of concept vehicles.

It also makes Singapore, an island country in Southeast Asia that are interested and even preparing to introduce their first local electric supercar named 'Dendrobium,' the supercar name derived of an orchid genus.

Singapore's Dendrobium electric supercar set to launch in Geneva Motor Show 2017. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZPnKJ)

As quoted of the Straits Times, Dendrobium is an electric-powered supercar. Uniquely, this eco-friendly supercar was developed by the SME (small and medium enterprises) named Vanda Electrics in collaboration with an F1 engineering giant.

With an initial investment of $10 million over the first two years, Vanda Electrics - a unit of family- owned Wong Fong Engineering Works - expects the two-door, two-seater hard-top to be ready for next year's Geneva Motor Show.

The Dendrobium supercar is named after a Singaporean orchid genus. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZPnKJ)

Wong Fong says Vanda Electrics has already secured funding from Titan Capital, a United States-based lender The supercar will be use a lot of aluminum and carbon fiber to cut the car weight. 

Vanda has engaged London-based design firm EPTA to design the low-slung, eye-popping, carbon/aluminium body, which includes a super-low front grill and an interesting open rear section that looks like it's designed to feature moving active aerodynamics.

Besides that, Vanda has also engaged Williams Advanced Engineering,  an engineering services and technology unit of the Williams group of companies, to embark on the ambitious project. As we all knew, Williams which is British, has one of the world's top F1 teams. 

Rear view of Dendrobium supercar. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZPnKJ)

The Wong Fong spokesman said the Dendrobium will be able to hit 100 km/h in under 3 seconds, "putting it comfortably in the performance range of hypercars". And according to preliminary spec sheets, it'll be a 1,500 horsepower battery-powered monster that will put out some 4,000 Newton-meters of torque.

The Dendrobium will carry between 90 and 100 kWh of batteries, giving it a range around 400 km/249 mi (roughly 8 times across Singapore and back) and a top speed around 400 km/h. It will use similar lithium-ion batteries that found in Formula E race cars, which are supplied by Williams. The car will have all-wheel torque vectoring.

The company is responsible for the interior and exterior design of the car, the basic architecture (which includes the way the doors open), as well as the branding and positioning.

Vanda tells us we should expect to see the Dendrobium eco-friendly supercar in the flesh at Geneva in 2017, ahead of a limited production run of 10 customer cars, for which there's no current pricing available. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | DENDROBIUM MOTORS | GIZMAG | STRAITS TIMES]

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Thousands of mysterious jars holds human remains found in Laos

Researchers have recently discovered a thousands of jars made of quartz stone and contains the human remains in an archaeological area named Plain of Jars in the central Laos. One of the findings is an odd-shaped quartz stones that covered the face of one human skeleton. Findings thousands of jars is expected to help researchers reveal secrets of the spread of this kind of stones across the country.

Human remains, estimated to be about 2,500 years old, were unearthed at the Plain of Jars site in Laos. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZLgY6)

When found, the skull under the cover of quartz as if peering through a huge hole in the middle of the stone, said Dougald O'Reilly, an archaeologist from the Australian National University (ANU). As quoted from Live Science on Monday, April 11, 2016, the archaeologist who led a team of scientists of Laos and Australia to examine the Plain of Jars in February, 2016.

"When we dug, the skull was being see through an opening. It is quite interesting, but it is not clear whether it was intentional," said O'Reilly as told to Live Science.

Ancient burial sites

The alleged burial site was 2,500 years old and was discovered by researchers from ANU, Monash University of Australia and the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism of Laos. They need approximately 4 weeks to do the mapping and excavation around a collection of carved stone jars scattered in the area.

Location of the Plain of Jars of central Laos. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZLgxs)

In the central Laos, there are more than 90 jar sites, some of them even have up to 400 stone jars with a size of up to 3 meters. These sites were scattered in the foothills, forests, and valleys in the highlands.

The members of this joint research team has been started at the most affordable place, known as the Jar Site 1, which is located a few kilometers away from the town of Phonsavan in the Xiang Khoang province, central Laos. They planned to examine the site next year.

The Laos government hopes to develop the Jar Site 1 as the archaeological center and UNESCO World Cultural Heritage in order to protect the area and stimulate the advancement of science and cultural tourism.

Mysterious Jars 

O'Reilly said that this expedition is the first major effort undertaken by archaeologists since its discovery in 1930 and intends to understand the usefulness of the jars and identify the maker. Since then, a number of archaeologists have done substantial work on their own about the Plain of Jars.

An aerial drone photograph of "Jar Site 1" in the Plain of Jars, located near Phonsavan in central Laos. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZLgY6)

The latest team consisted of 11 researchers who working to develop the first site's complete scientific study, including a map of the Geographic Information System (GIS) based on the location appropriate to the jars, discs stones and quartz stone markers scattered in the site. The most large jar has a weighs more than 9,000 kg. Somehow could be there. 

"There are a number of quarry are known to be the origin place of jars and should had to be carried across a distance of about 8 to 10 km to the jar site," said O'Reilly.

Archaeologists spent four weeks mapping and excavating the ground around a group of the massive carved stone jars that dot the landscape. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZLgY6)

"So there is a great effort involved when moving the stones. It could be the elephants certainly involved, considering the weight of the jars."

To carving the jar is also certainly not easy for primitive humans who have no iron tools, he said again.

"Some of the jars have a height of more than 2 meters or 3 meters with a circumference that can not be hugged by our arms," said O'Reilly.

"And there are some variations in the design of the jars. There are some that have openings that are smaller or larger, there is a rectangular, circular or oval. Curious how they sculpt these objects."

For many years, the mystery of the diversity of size and shape of the jars are inviting a number of researchers to issue a number of theories about its usefulness.

"It may act as a kind of warning, and the diversity of sizes may indicate a difference in status and even there is a hierarchy in the jars creator society. And it take a lot of time to create a theory."

Revealed a number of new mysteries

The burial place has odd-shaped quartz stones is one of three distinctive types of burial sites are found in the Jar Site 1, the researchers said.

"This is the first time a type of burial was found in the Plain of Jars, but if you have found one, then there may be more to the other," says O'Reilly.

Archaeologists also found an oddly shaped quartz stone covering the face of one of the newly uncovered human skeletons. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZLgY6)

"The cemetery is also quite interesting because it provides the skeleton not just one person, but two. The bones of the skull are thought to have come from an 8 year old child was also found in the grave, in addition to the adult skeleton."

This expedition also found 11 ceramic jars, which allegedly contained the "secondary"  funeral of number of human bones that flesh had decomposed. Found also an excavation contain the bones of secondary graves covered by a lump of large limestone. Marker stones and stone discs on the ground surface around jars stones seem to relate to a secondary burial site, said O'Reilly.

The scientific research to the examples and relics from the Plain of Jars will be continued in the laboratory. O'Reilly said that this expedition has found some human teeth that could provide DNA for testing as well as clues about the origins of the ancient people who were buried there.

However, DNA tends badly damaged in the climatic conditions in Southeast Asia so that it is possible telaahannya not appropriate, he added. The contents of ceramic jars excavated from this site will also be examined to ascertain whether it contains the remains of a human body as alleged by the researchers.

The contents of the ceramic jars excavated from the site will also be carefully examined to confirm if, as the researchers suspect, they hold human remains. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZLgY6)

But not everything is revealed in the Plain of Jars. Some archaeologists proposed the stone jars alleged was used in order to remove the bodies before the bones are cleaned to a secondary burial. It is not possible known.

"This case is something that is found in some religious practices in other parts of the world, but still needs to be investigated a bit further on the Plain of Jars," said O'Reilly.

One of the biggest problems at the site is that the jars are already exposed to the harsh climate of Southeast Asia for more than 2,000 years so it is very difficult for the researchers to learn and perform a series of tests on artifacts.

"Probably we could try taking a fatty substance (lipid) on the stone jars to see if there is evidence of decay (decomposition) of the human body, but the jars had been exposed for so long, so this is a bit too hopeful," he said.

"So I am worried we will probably never know the main purpose of these large stone jars." *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | LIVESCIENCE]

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BCR Ducati 900ss Café Racer styled motorcycle

Benjie's Café Racers are back! After (successfully) trying their hand at building a few Scrambler and Tracker styled builds they've returned to their Café Racer roots. Blending 90's performance with 50's styling their 'Velotica D'Epoca', which translates to 'Vintage Speed', is built around a '96 Ducati 900 Supersport SP. Blending modern materials with old school fabrication techniques it's the perfect example of what a modern Cafe Racer should be.

BCR Ducati 900ss Café Racer styled motorcycle. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZNmXj)

After finding the tired old SuperSport decaying in a garage the bike was relocated to the BCR workshop with the intention of starting work on it straight away. Like any business though, paid work had to come first, so the bike spent 12 months collecting dust, waiting for its turn.

Front side view of BCR Ducati 900ss Café Racer styled motorcycle. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZNmXj)

"The first modification made was to the rear frame." recalls Benjie. "We cut the subframe away and fabricated a new one from stainless steel to suit our vision. The new tank was put together using aluminum, shaped with old British race bikes in mind. We added an oil temperature gauge opposite the filler cap in the vein of old 1950s Nortons and a classic stainless steel tank strap with a wrist-watch-style latch to hold it true."

With the work on the fuel tank finished, Benjie and his team began sculpting a steel mold for the rear cowl. Designed to be as short and simple as possible it matches the width of the factory rear wheel perfectly. After the mold was completed it was used to construct the strong, lightweight carbon fibre tail. The seats upholstery was done using a mix of alcantara and cowhide leather and a matching tank pad was upholstered to include a nifty storage pocket.

To compliment the alloy tank new fenders were rolled from aluminum and secured with stainless steel brackets. The front one even wears a 'pedestrian-slicer' style numberplate as a nod to the British motorcycles that influenced the original Cafe Racer movement.

Here are several pictures of BCR Ducati 900ss Café Racer styled motorcycle. (All pictures taken from: http://adf.ly/1ZNmXj)

"We fabricated our own stainless clip on bars with drilled-out speed holes and exposed the blacked-out forks to give the bike a nice racing feel. The hand-hammered headlight bucket has the speedometer recessed into it to once again recognise British design trends from the Cafe Racer era."

Rear side view of BCR Ducati 900ss Café Racer styled motorcycle. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZNmXj)

Rather than taking the obvious route and converting to wire-spoked rims the lightweight aluminum wheels have been retained. A true function over form decision that somehow hasn't detracted visually from the end result. Performance focused Pirelli rubber was also chosen to ensure the bikes rider could properly put it through its paces. And Benjie made a set of new stainless steel foot peg brackets, foot controls and pegs to position the rider correctly for aggressive riding.

The Velotica D'Epoca's exhaust currently holds the top position in my '2016 sexiest pipes' list. The painstakingly welded, pie-cut stainless headers were inspired by the snakes of Medusa’s head. Slithering their way around the engine each one holds a hand-hammered muffler with polished alloy heat shield and exposed welds to illustrate the hard work that went in to making them.

Since the motor was running strong when the bike was purchased it hasn't been heavily reworked. The previous owner had already installed race cams, port & polished the heads, added a Keihin FCR 41mm carb and a programmable ignition system. After a service and some minor maintenance and the carb was re-jetted to suit the custom exhaust and it was ready to rock. The bike's 3-way adjustable Racetech Showa forks, alloy swing arm and adjustable Ohlins mono-shock also provided great performance so they were simply given a good clean and adjusted to suit the bikes new reduced weight. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | BENJIE'S CAFÉ RACERS| RETURN OF THE CAFE RACER]

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A wild looks of BMW i9 Concept

News of the BMW was preparing a hybrid supercar been heard for some time ago. This can be seen with the launch of their latest concept car called 'BMW Vision Next 100.' This concept car use an autonomous technology and loaded with various advanced features. Outside the context of the latest concept car which was officially created by BMW earlier, there is another BMW's concept car design is interesting enough to be discussed.

Rendering image of BMW i9 Concept designed by Carlos Aliaga Pastor. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZQ5ul)

In mid 2015 and an automotive designer named Carlos Aliaga Pastor've made the design of a concept car named 'BMW i9 Concept'. Of scattered images, can be seen that the 2016 BMW i9 hybrid-powered supercar has a futuristic looks even compared to the BMW i8 and BMW Vision Next 100, the BMW i9 Supercar has a pretty wild designs.

Front view of BMW i9 Concept. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZQ5ul)

With a very futuristic looks, so it is not surprising that this supercar will be a rival to Ferrari La Ferrari, Porsche 918 Spyder, and McLaren P1 in the future. According to the designer, this supercar will use the same drivetrain with the BMW i8.

Front side top view of BMW i9 Concept. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZQ5ul)

But if the BMW i8 is equipped with a 1.5 liter 3-cylinder turbocharged engine and electric motor, BMW i9 will be equipped with a 3.0-liter, 6-cylinder. The engine is mated with a larger electric motor so as to contribute more power than the i8. Thus, to accelerate from 0-100 km/h should account for less than 4 seconds.

Rear side view of BMW i9 Concept. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZQ5ul)

The two-door looks like something plucked straight from science fiction, with dramatically angled fenders, uses a kind of Sonic the Hedgehog wheels, and a rear end that may or may not feature an ion thruster from a TIE fighter. All of which come together to form a supercar figure that has the look of grim and  wild, which is very much different of the supercars in general.

If this supercar concept made in prototype form someday, may be obtained something very extraordinary from it. But unfortunately so far, the supercar still in the form of rendering images on the computer screen that is very far from reality. Maybe someday BMW will make this supercar runs on the streets. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | GEARHEAD]

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Falcon 9 rocket successfully launched and landed on a drone ship in the ocean

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lauched from cape Canaveral, Florida on Friday, April 8, 2016 carrying a cargo vessel for the International Space Station (ISS). A single booster rocket that could be used again then quickly landed back in the ocean's surface, NASA said in a telephone interview.

The SpaceX Falcon 9 first stage sucessfully landed on a barge in the Atlantic Ocean. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZIz5B)

It took off at 16:43 local time from Cape Canaveral, it marks the continued rocket flight again, to supply spacecraft conducted by the privately owned Space Exploration Technologies for NASA, following the accident at the launch in June 2015 that destroyed different cargo to the International Space Station.

Approximately 2.5 minutes after launch on Friday, the main part of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket separated, turned and back to the landing platform in the Atlantic ocean about 300 km northeast of Cape Canaveral. Previously four landing in the ocean had always failed.

Trajectory paths of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. (Picture from: http://adf.ly/1ZIw7v)

The Falcon 9 booster rocket finally managed to touch the surface of the ground base for the first time on December last year. This achievement is considered as a milestone for the Elon Musk's high-tech businesses service to develops the re-usable rockets.

Cargo vessel driven by a rocket, dubbed Dragon is reached the ISS on Sunday, April 10, 2016. The sender rides loaded around 3,175 kg of food, supplies and scientific experiments, including a prototype habitat that could bubbles to the orbital outpost. And as we knew, the ISS is a space laboratory worth over US. $100 billion which is floating over 400 km above the Earth's surface. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | THE VERGE]

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